Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad launched a political programme Tuesday for establishing a fully sovereign and independent Palestinian state within two years. Fayyad, presenting a 38-page political document - "a vision" - at a news conference in his Ramallah office, said the plan "centers around the objective of building strong state institutions capable of providing, equitably and effectively, for the needs of our citizens, despite the (Israeli) occupation." "This is the path to freedom," he said. "This is the path to the creation of the independent state of Palestine on the Palestinian territory occupied in 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital. And, yes, this can and must happen within the next two years." "It is time for our people to obtain their unconditional freedom and national rights as required by international law," he was quoted as saying by the German News Agency "DPA". "The establishment of an independent, sovereign and viable Palestinian state is fundamental for peace, security and stability in our region." But, he warned, "whereas Israeli settlement policies and activities continue to undermine the viability of the two-state solution, our government is determined to preserve and advance this solution concept." The Palestinian prime minister said his government has been working on implementing this programme through development and infrastructure projects it has been carrying out as part of a three- year development plan launched during the Paris economic and donors conference held last year. "We already have embarked on the task of building the state," he said. "Many projects are already underway." The Fayyad plan includes several ambitious projects, including the construction of an airport in the Jordan Valley area of the West Bank in addition to the international airport that already exists in the Rafah area of the Gaza Strip but which has been made inoperative by Israeli military strikes over the past nine years.
